Railway vehicle coupler device



April 6, 1937. s. MILLER RAILWAY VEHICLE COUPLER DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed No v. 27, 1955 INVENTOIR YShe 'man Mil/61' Will/I114 6 y 0 ATTO NEY April 6, 1937. 5 MlLLER 2,075,953

RAILWAY VEHICLE cbUPLER DEVICE Filed Nov. 27, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Sherman Mil/e1 ATTORN EY Patented Apr. 6, 1937 UNITED STATES 2,075,953 RAILWAY VEHICLE COUPLER. DEVICE Sherman Miller, Schenectady, N. Y., assignor to American Locomotive Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application November 2'7, 1935, Serial No. 51,727

2 This invention relates to railway vehicle coupler devices-and more particularly to the pivotal or hinged type, especially adapted for association with a locomotive having a streamlined front 5 shroud, the coupler of the device, through the pivotal or hinged construction, being capable of folding up to an out-of-the-way position to the rear of the shroud.

An object of the invention is 'to provide, in a 10 locomotive, a front end streamlined shroud, spaced at a portion thereof from a portion of the locomotive proper thereby providing achamber, with an opening in the shroud opening into the chamber and normally covered by a cover forml5 ing part of the shroud; and a coupler device secured to the locomotive within the chamber, the coupler being adapted to be extended through 'the opening to operable position, and to be. moved from operable position to an inoperable out-of- 2 the-way position within the chamber whereby the cover may be placed in position to cover the opening and to entirely conceal the coupler device.

A further object is to provide a coupler device especially adapted for the beforementioned type 25 of locomotive, but capable of other uses, comprising improved structural characteristics simple in construction, eflicient'in operation, the coupler being easily moved to an operable and an inoperable position. In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a; side elevation of the coupler device of the present invention, showing the coupler in operable position; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the coupler device, parts being shown in section, on the line IIII of Fig. 5, showing the coupler in inoperable position; Fig. 3 is a plan viewof the coupler device two-part bracket for securing the coupler device to the locomotive proper, the two parts being spread apart from their normal engaging position; Fig. 4 is a plan view of the coupler support in its normal horizontal poTrtion: Fig; 5 is a front view, partly in section, on the line V-V of Fig. 1, of the bracket and coupler support assembled; Fig. 6 is a plan view of the keeper or locking pin for securing the coupler in an operable and-also in an inoperableposition; Fig. '7 is a plan view of the coupler when in horizontal operable position; Fig. 8 is a fragmental diagrammatic side elevation of a streamlined locomotive involving the present invention, with the coupler in extended operable position through'the opening at the front of the streamlined shroud; Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 8 but showing the couthe cover closing the opening in the shroud; Fig.

10 is a front elevation of one-half the cover and the latching means for securing the cover at one edge thereof to the shroud; and Fig. 11 is a sec- 60 tion on the line Xl-Xl of Fig. 10.

pler in inoperable out-of-the-way position with Referring first to Figs. 8' to 11, exemplifying an improved embodiment of the invention, the locomotive I, shown fragmentally and diagrammatically, is intended to represent any preferred or well-known type of streamlined locomotive In the present instance, for convenience, it is shown secured to a bumper beam 6 forming part of t e locomotive proper, a bracket forming part of th coupler device being provided with orifices, as wi l later more fully appear when the coupler device is described in detail, for the reception of bolts 1 which pass through the bumper beam 6 for securing the coupler device to the locomotive proper.

The, shroud 2 is provided with an opening 8 opening into the chamber, 4. A cover 9 is provided to cover the opening and is shaped to conform to the shape of the shroud so that the configuration of the shroud will not be interrupted when the cover is in closed position, and so that none of the streamlined effect in running efliciency will be be lost. Hinges l0 are secured to an edge of the opening and to an adjacent edge of the cover so that the cover may be swung open, when desired, as shown in Fig. 8, and closed under normal running conditions, as shown in Fig. 9. The opposite edge of the cover is provided with latches I I, each having a latch member l2 disposed on the inside of the cover to engage the adjacent edge of the opening when the cover is latched in closed position, and a handle l3 disposed on the outside of the cover to turn the latch to a cover-closing or a cover-opening position, as desired.

Fig. 8 shows the coupler swung downwardly and extending through the opening in bperable position, and Fig. 9 shows the coupler swung upwardly in inoperable position within the chamber 4, these operations of the coupler device being later more fully described.

Referring now to the coupler device 5, a bracket I4 is provided for supporting the other features of the coupler device. The bracket is made in two separate parts, l5, l6, which are similar in all respects, except one is a right part and the other is a left part. Each of the parts is open at its top and front to permit the coupler to be swung to and from its operable and inoperable positions, and comprises a bottom wall l1, an outer side wall 18 and a rear wall IS. The rear wall extends laterally and downwardly beyond the ,side wall and the bottom wall respectively, and the extended lateral portion is connected to the side wall near the top by a strengthening web 20. The rear wall is provided with orifices 2| for receiving the bolts 1 before referred to, for securing the bracket to the locomotive proper. In the 5 present instance, for'convenience, the bracket is shown secured to the bumper beam (Figs. 8 and 9) but it will be understood that it will be secured to the most suitable part of the locomotive frame structure. A sufficient number of these orifices 10 is provided around the margin of the rear wall to insure ample securing means for the coupler device. Each of the bracket parts is provided at the upper portion of the inner edge of the rear wall with a forwardly projecting lug 22, the

two lugs being provided with aligned orifices 23, and a bolt 24 engages these orifices to secure the bracket parts together at their upper portions. The lugs are provided with an upper face 25 for engaging a portion of the coupler when in inoperable position, as will later more fully appear.

Each of the bracket parts is provided at the inner edge of the bottom wall with a depending fiange which is also integrally connected with the lower extension of the rear wall, affording 25 reinforcement to the bracket. Aligned orifices 21 are provided at the front and rear portions of the fia'nges 26, and a bolt 28 engages each pair of these aligned orifices to secure the bracket parts together at their lower portions. Each of 30 the bottom walls l1 curves downwardly at its central portion, as shown at 29, to provide clearance space for a purpose that will later appear, and terminates at the front in a horizontal shelf or rest 30 for supporting the coupler when in operable position. Each of the side walls I8 is provided with a reinforced orifice 3|, these orifices being in horizontal alignment; and, at its upper forward corner, with a lug 32, one of the lugs being provided with an orifice 33, the opposite lug being reinforced and provided with a slot 34 in horizontal alignment with the orifice 33. Each of the side walls defining the slot 34 is provided with an orifice 35, these orifices being in alignment and their axis crossing, at right angles,

4 the axis of the orifice 33 and slot 34.

The coupler device further comprises a coupler support 35 which, in the preferred embodiment, is, as shown, formed as an integral casting. It comprises a relatively large hub-like cylindrical portion 31 at each side thereof, reduced at the end portion to provide a trunnion 38, and a centrally disposed body portion 39. The support is disposed above the bottom walls |1 within the space provided between the side walls l8 and rear walls I 9 of the bracket parts, one of the trunnions 38 engaging the orifice 3| adjacent thereto and the opposite trunnion engaging the opposite orifice 3| adjacent thereto whereby the support can pivot or swing about the horizontal axis of the orifices 3| to a lowered coupler operable and to a raised coupler inoperable position. It will be understood that the integral coupler support is assembled'with the bracket parts prior to the parts being bolted together.

The body portion 39 is designed in the form of a socket open at the front, and comprises a bottom wall 40, a top wall 4|, a rear wall 42 and oppositely disposed forwardly flaring side walls 43, thereby providing the forwardly open socket,

indicatedat 44. The bottom wall 40 is provided with an orifice 45 reinforced at. the outer face of the wall, and the top wall 4| is provided with an orifice 46 reinforced at the outer face of the Wall, in alignment with the orifice 45.

The coupler of the present invention, indicated generally by the numeral 41, may be of any wellknown or preferred design. It comprises the usual forwardly disposed coupler body portion 48, requiring no special detailed description, and the usual rearwardly disposed reduced shank portion 49. The shank portion 49 at the rear end portion thereof is disposed within the socket 44 with its bottom face 50 and its top face 5| making a working fit with the inner face of the bottom wall 40 and the inner face of the top wall 4| respectively.

The shank portion 49 is provided with an orifice 52 in line with the orifices 4546 and a pivot pin 53 engages these three orifices, providing a pivotal connection for permitting the coupler 41 to swing thereabout in a horizontal plane, as is required when in service, the flaring walls 43 providing ample clearance space to permit for a maximum swinging movement in either direction. The pin is provided with a head at its upper end and an orifice at its extended lower end, the orifice engaging a cotter pin 54 for securing the pin 53 in place.

The axis of the pin 53 passes through the axis of the trunnions 38 at a right angle thereto and is vertical when the coupler is in operable position. These two axes cross each other preferably at substantially the center of the coupler support, thereby affording a support of maximum strength to withstand the draft and bufiing forces when in service.

In the preferred embodiment shown the rear wall 42 is curved, providing a cylindrical inner face 55 having an axis coincident with the axis of the orifices 4546, the inner end face of the shank portion 49 is similarly curved, as shown at 56, and the pin 53 is given a suitable working fit whereby the curved faces mayengage each other to receive the buffing forces transmitted through the coupler, permitting at the same time a free swinging'movement of the coupler in a horizontal plane. The curvature of the bottom walls of the bracket parts indicated at 29, previously referred to, provides the required clearance space for thelower extended end portion of the pin 53 and the rear lower edge of the coupler support to permit the coupler, coupler support and pivot pin to swing vertically to and from their operable and inoperable positions.

The rear portion of the bottom of the body portion 48 is provided with a fiat horizontal face 51 which engages the horizontal rest 30 when the coupler is lowered to operable position, as shown in Fig. 1, for supporting the coupler in this position. The body portion 48 is further provided at its rear end with an upper vertical face 58 which engages with the upper faces 25 of the lugs 22 when the coupler is swung upwardly to its out-of-the-way position, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, thereby holding the coupler against lateral swinging movement about the pin 53 which might otherwise occur.

A keeper or locking pin 59 engages, at one of its ends, the orifice 33 and, at the other of its ends, the slot 34. The keeper at this last mentioned end is provided with a transverse groove 60 in line with the orifices 35, and a bolt 6| engages the orifices 35 and groove 50 to securely hold the pin 59 in place.

The operation of the coupler device is simple. When the coupler is in operable position the parts are in the relative positions shown in Fig. 1, the coupler being supported 'upon the rest 30, and free to swing about the then vertical pin 53 in a horizontal plane, as service requires, the

plane about the axis of the horizontal trunnions 38, to its inoperable out-of-the-way position, as shown in Fig. 2. In this position the shank portion 49 abuts the forward ends of thelugs 22 with the face 58 resting upon'the faces 25, whereupon the locking pin 59 is replaced, as is also the securing bolt BI. The pin 59 engages the adjacent wall of the shank portion, holding the coupler and coupler support-in their inoperable position, and the coupler is also held against sidewise swinging movement about its pin 53. When the coupler is'to be swung downwardly to operable position the pin 59 and bolt 6| will be again removed to permit the downward swinging movement of the coupler and coupler support, and

thereafter the pin 59 and bolt 6| will be again replaced. The pin 59 serves to hold the coupler both in an operable and in an inoperable position, although it is more important that the coupler be held in inoperable position, as'ordinarily the couple: will remain in its operable position without the aid of the pin 59.

It will be apparent that the coupler device is not restricted for use in a streamlined locomotive as shown in Figs. 8 and 9, but may be used wherever appropriate in any railway vehicle. It

is however of special importance in connection with a streamlined locomotive. Such locomotives are designed principally for running in one direction and at the front of a train in order to obtain the advantages of the streamlined parts. Therefore it is seldom that the coupler device is put to use in such types of locomotives, and accordingly most of the time the coupler device will be out of service. It is of special importance that obstructions to the streamlined effect of the locomotive be reduced to a minimum, and accordingly it is of great importance that the coupler of the seldom used coupler device be moved to an out-of-the-way position behind the shroud and that the opening be closed by a cover or door that is preferably streamlined, as is the door in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, to maintain the continuity of the streamlined shroud at the front portion of the locomotive.

While there has been hereinbefore described an approved embodiment of this invention, it will be understood that many and various changes and modifications in form, arrangement of parts and details of construction thereof may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and that all such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims are contemplated as a part of this invention.

The invention claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a locomotive the combination of a relatively thin sheet metal streamlined shroud covering the front end of the locomotive proper and spaced therefrom to provide a chamber, said shroud having an opening at the front thereof; means at the front end of said locomotive within said chamber for supporting a coupler device; a bracket within said chamber secured to said means; a coupler, when in operable position, extending substantially horizontally through said, opening, with a portion thereof disposed within said chamber and with the remaining portion thereof disposed forwardly beyond said shroud, comprising a shank portion and a relatively large body portion disposed at the outer end of said shank portion; means providing a pivotal connection between said coupler and said bracket having a horizontal axis extending transversely of said locomotive, and disposed at the inner end of said shank portion whereby substantially the entire mass of said coupler is disposed outwardly from said axis, and forwardly therefrom when said coupler is in said operable position; means for supporting the major portion of the weight of said coupler when in said operableposition,

said pivotal connection adapting said coupler to be swung from said operable position upwardlyi to substantially vertical inoperable position, at which latter position said mass is disposed above said axis, and substantially all the weight-thereof is supported by said pivotal connection; a cover of relatively thin sheet metal for closingfsaid'ii position; means for stopping said coupler when in its said inoperable position; and detachable means for preventing said coupler from accidentally falling from said inoperable position against said cover.

2. In a locomotive the combination of a relatively thin sheet metal streamlined shroud covering the front end of the locomotive proper and spaced therefrom to'provide a chamber, said shroud having an opening at the front thereof; means at the front end of said locomotive within said chamber for supporting a coupler device; a bracket within' said chamber secured to said means; a coupler, when in operable position, extending substantially horizontally through said opening, with a portion thereof disposed within said chamber and with the remaining portion thereof disposed forwardly beyond said shroud, comprising a shank portion and a relatively large 7 body portion disposed at the outer end .of' said shank portion; means providing a flexible connection between said coupler and said bracket whereby said coupler may be swung in a vertical plane andin a plane at right angles thereto, and

disposed at the inner end of said shank portion whereby substantially the entire mass of said coupler is disposed outwardly from said connection, and forwardly therefrom when said coupler is in said operable position; means for supporting the major portion of the weight of said coupler when in said operable position, said flexible connection adaptingsaid coupler to be swung SHERMAN MILLER. 

